1. Field
Embodiments described herein generally relate to heat treatment of unitary ceramic articles for use in ultraviolet (UV) semiconductor processing chambers.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the semiconductor industry, devices are fabricated by a number of manufacturing processes which produce structures having continually decreasing dimensions. Some manufacturing processes, such as UV curing processes and ozone (O3) cleaning processes, expose various chamber components to corrosive environments which may corrode the processing chambers or the surfaces of the chamber components. The corrosion may generate particles which frequently contaminate the devices being produced.
As device geometries shrink, susceptibility to defects increases and particle contaminant requirements become more stringent. Accordingly, allowable levels of particle contamination may be reduced. The minimize particle contamination introduced by UV and ozone exposure, chamber materials have been developed that are generally resistant to the corrosive UV and ozone environments. Examples of such materials include ceramics composed of Al2O3, AlN, SiC, Y2O3, quartz, ZrO2, and the like. However, the corrosion resistance properties of these ceramic materials may be insufficient for certain applications where particle contamination plays a pronounced role in device functionality. Various cleaning techniques, such as wet cleaning with acid, utilized to remove particles from chamber components may also be ineffective at removing particles and further preventing particle generation to the degree necessary to ensure defect-free device manufacturing.
Thus, what is needed in the art are apparatus and methods for chamber components having desirable properties which reduce particle generation in corrosive environments.